PART I: Philosophy and Software
I have been really slow to adopt digital technology in my photography. My focus has always been on finding cameras that have been unused and unwanted for years, decades even, and reemploying them, so digital photography never really entered my radar. I do, however, now own an iPhone. I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited about the built-in camera, as that was a major selling point for me. After owning this device for about a year now my thoughts have really shifted on this topic, though not in the direction I expected.
I had thought when I first got my phone that it would be great that I now had a point-and-shoot camera in my pocket at all times, and that I'd use it constantly just to document my life for personal purposes - not that I really feel a need to go back and see visual evidence of what I've eaten for lunch or what craziness I saw in the streets on my way to and from work. It seemed like it would be something completely separate from what I normally consider "photography" since it didn't feel to me like it was at all artistic, and I was fine with that. Excited even. I didn't know the first thing about "apps" or "filters" yet, or about all the crazy photo editing programs people have created, and I had definitely told myself I wasn't interested. Here is where my original thoughts were proven wrong.
I will keep the chronological stuff short from here on out.
I started using my phone as I thought - for snapshots. I have never been on board with social networking sites, really, but I decided to give Instagram a try since I so enjoyed seeing the feeds of people my other iPhone user friends followed. My feed consisted, and still consists, mostly of shots taken on my various walks, trips, etc. and of various objects I consider important to me - my plants, my home decorations, and the fruit I pick up at markets. Not very exciting or original, I know. I never used to use any of the built-in filters in Instagram because I found it annoying how little control I had over them and their intensity - they are either on or off, and on isn't very subtle. I realized that I did like the thought of some post-production kind of work on the photos to add a level I was completely unfamiliar with - a bit of a challenge! So I started by researching apps that would allow me to edit with more control and ended up finding combinations of things that I liked and that allowed me to create something of a cohesive look for some "series" I had been working on. This post-production work ended up adding the amount of personal touch and control that I apparently had been needing to consider what I was doing to be mine, and to be art. While I still don't take it as seriously as I do my film photography, it has become something I have a huge amount of respect for and I have made it a goal to learn as much as I can and to grow in this new and completely legitimate discipline. Speaking of legitimate shots, check out this series on the current war taken by a couple of professional photographers using the Hipstamatic app.
Here are some apps I like for editing:
Snapseed: This app is by far my favorite, and though I use it less now than I did when I first discovered it I would consider it extremely helpful for a couple features. First, it gives you complete control over the intensity of your edits and provides an easy way to compare pre- and post-effect before applying. It does have several filter-type things that I almost never use, but they can be fun to play with if you are into that kind of thing. The number one tool in this app that I use, though, is the Details tool. I don't know enough about photo editing to know what this might be called by the pros, but it sharpens lines and makes the detail stand out clearly. It's awesome for architectural shots or for showing detail in small things. It can definitely be overdone, but is pretty great when you get the right balance. Costs $4.99, making it the most expensive app I own, but I have seen it go for free a few times (that's how I got it) so keep watching it and maybe you can get lucky.
PhotoForge2: This one's pretty good for making more "professional" edits, like messing with color balance and whatnot. It has a lot of things I'd never use, but again can be fun just for playing with. I really find this one most useful for making changes to bring out textures in photos, or emphasizing a certain color. The cost here is $1.99.
PictureShow: I'd probably say this one is the best if you're looking for a quick filter to add where you don't really want to mess with any settings and still want it to turn out ok. PictureShow essentially provides you with a long list of filters with easy-to-imagine names. You an scroll through by swiping the photo to see them one at a time or you can see them all as thumbnails in case you already have an idea of what you're looking for. There are several awful ones, but really this list is pretty solid. This is another $1.99 app.
Cross Process: A technique familiar to many film enthusiasts, this app attempts to emulate the look of cross processed film, and it doesn't do a bad job. There isn't much control over what happens here. You have the option to enable or disable the 5 different styles of cross processing (basic, blue, red, green, and extreme) which is a little funny considering the appeal of cross processing is that you never really know what you'll get. The biggest downfall to this app is that you have no control over the intensity, and they are really too strong for almost any application. I did learn a trick from a fellow blogger, though, for countering this: You can save the photo after "cross processing" and use another image blending app to blend it with the original and control how much of the effected photo you want to show through. For this I use the "app-ly" named Image Blender ($2.99). Sorry. I couldn't help myself. Cross Process is $1.99.
VSCO CAM: Here's an interesting one. I'm not even sure how much I like this one, but I'm including it on my list because there have been a few photos that I have been very pleased with after using this app to edit it. The deal with VSCO CAM is that it seems to be a very hipster-friendly app made by a very hipster-friendly company. The thing I'll give them credit for is that they created an app that doesn't really allow you to make your photos too crazy or gaudy or overdone. It provides a small list of color filters that are simply numbered (instead of being given goofy names) and I could see all of these filters being useful in one situation or another. On top of this, there are more specific edits you can make to change the saturation level, the washed-out-edness, even one to simulate grain, and a few others that you just have to play with to see the appeal. I totally get it with this one, as it is really easy to use and can make your photos look pretty good. I just don't really understand why everybody was talking about it when it first came out. On a positive note, it is only $0.99.
Diptic is good for making collages. I don't really get the obsession with collages. $0.99.
Ok, I didn't realize this would be so long. If you're still interested, stay tuned for the next part, which I will write about hardware...
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